January 2005

Katonah Study Group For Integrative Medicine Newsletter

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In this issue:

Renee Simon, MS, CNS presents a case in which she treated a child suffering of hyperactivity, poor attention span and other problems.

Mark Banschick, MD discusses The effects of laughter on stress (Jump to article)

Case History in Clinical Nutrition – Child with ADHD, Poor Digestive Health, Sensory Integration Issues & Food Sensitivities

by Renee Simon, MS, CNS, Board Certified Clinical Nutritionist

Background

Alison was two ½ years old when she first came to see me. She was normal at birth, but after having her first round of immunizations at two months of age, she developed chronic diarrhea with blood and mucus in the stool. When I first met Alison, she was hyperactive with poor attention span, and was suspected of being somewhere on the autistic spectrum although she had good eye contact and no problems speaking. Her parents wanted help with the diet and digestive issues foremost. Recently Alison had been to a pediatric gastroenterologist who did several tests and found no problems. She also visited an allergy specialist at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center in New York City who stated in his letter to the referring doctor, “allergy does not contribute to Alison’s problems,” after doing the radioallergosorbent test (RAST) using serum IgE for egg, milk, tuna, tomato, apple, cheddar cheese, mold, wheat, casein, peanut, walnut, and dust mites.

During my first visit with Alison and her parents, it was clear that she (and they) were in distress. She couldn’t sit still, had large allergy shiners under her eyes, and her color was poor, a symptom which usually reflects a malfunctioning immune system. Her parents confirmed this by telling me Alison had chronic congestion, sore throats, cough, and a drippy nose.

Treatment

 My approach was first to work on Alison’s diet. We removed the sweets and preservatives and added protein with each meal and snack to help stabilize blood sugar, thereby reducing her hyperactivity and irritability. The next step was to heal the digestive tract by using the 4R principle – first, remove foods she was sensitive to as well as any germs, bad bacteria or toxic metals using anti-fungal herbs and gentle homeopathic remedies. Next re-introduce to the digestive system good micro-flora and digestive enzymes. Then replace the diet with healthy non-processed foods, vitamins, minerals, and essential fatty acids. Lastly, repair the gut lining with glutamine, DGL, aloe leaf, MSM, slippery elm, and marshmallow root.

The next steps were improving Alison’s immune system, helping with her sensory issues, and facilitating her liver detoxification. Normally I like to handle digestive problems first before moving on. In this case the immune system was functioning so poorly, I needed to make some recommendations to keep her from getting sick and on antibiotics in the future.

The family decided to test the following: stool using the specialized laboratory mentioned earlier, IgG food sensitivities, hair mineral/toxic metals, and urine organic acids to find inborn errors in metabolism and assess her detoxification pathways.

Alison’s IgG food sensitivity test revealed that she was “very” sensitive to nine foods. The most significant were eggs, milk products, and sugar. Her stool test revealed undigested food and mucus, no beneficial bacteria and possibly bad bacteria. The hair test showed low calcium and magnesium levels (the relaxing or quieting minerals), high sodium and potassium (which may indicate high adrenal and cortisol levels - the stress indicators), low zinc and elevated aluminum, which both have to do with attention, focus, and memory problems. Last, the urine test revealed yeast metabolites and other nutritional deficiencies.

You may be wondering why there was a discrepancy with the tests that were done by Alison’s doctors. This is best answered by looking at the differences between traditional and alternative medicine. Using an IgE antibody to test for immediate response food allergies is the standard test done by doctors and allergists. Many naturopaths and nutritionists will also check for food sensitivities through other delayed response antibodies as well, which will yield totally different results. The hair test, although widely used by the police force for drug and forensic testing, is not generally accepted in the traditional medical community. Many in natural medicine feel it is one of the best overall markers of nutritional status because unlike blood, which reveals just a day at a time, the hair reflects the last six months of your life. Some of the stool and urine tests may be more acceptable by conventional doctors, but there may be differences in the labs used and the extensiveness of the test which may yield different results.

Results

Over the next year and a half I worked closely with Alison’s parents focusing on her diet, removing the foods she was sensitive to, adding protein and essential fats, and rotating various nutrients in and out to help heal her gut, build her immune system, and improve the underlying toxicity problems. The result is a child with normal bowel function, improved immune system, better concentration and focus, and somewhat improved hyperactivity. We are continuing to work on this and her remaining sensory issues, and I am optimistic about Alison’s chances of enrolling in a mainstream kindergarten program when the time comes.

About the presenter

Renee A. Simon, MS, CNS is a Board Certified Clinical Nutritionist, writer, and reconnective healing practitioner who specializes in nutrition, exercise, and the mind/body connection. She is President of her own company, Total Wellness, focusing on helping her clients achieve optimal health naturally. Her book Take Back Your Health-A Total Wellness Guide for You and Your Family was released this September, with excellent reviews. Ms. Simon’s book teaches 4 simple steps to achieve and maintain your ideal body weight, improve your energy and vitality, overcome difficult medical conditions, and raise healthy children.

Ms. Simon has hosted her own television show based on her book. She has conducted numerous workshops for hospitals, universities, health spas, corporations, schools, corporations, and large not for profit organizations. Ms. Simon has private practices in Ridgefield Connecticut, South Salem, and at the Center for Health & Healing in Mount Kisco, New York and can be reached at (914) 763-9107, www.totalwellnessnutrition.com or rsimon312@aol.com.

The Effect of Mirthful Laughter on Stress and Natural Killer Cell Activity

by Mark Banschick, MD

A recent study at Indiana State University and Rush Medical Center in Chicago examined laughter as a method of reducing stress in healthy women. The study found that mirthful laughter (as compared to simple distraction) not only lowered stress levels but also appeared to improve Natural Killer Cell Activity - an accepted physiological marker for improved immune system functioning. We intuitively know that laughter can be a salve for what ails us, but it seems very difficult to get into that head space when one is sick or unhappy. It is very interesting to watch a growing literature on the relationship between Laughter and Decreased Stress as well as an apparently positive finding between Laughter and an Improved Immune System. This is Integrative Medicine at it's simplest and most basic. Something to smile about.

Reference: Alternative Therapies vol9:2 p38-43

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